Corn is a herbaceous thermophilic plant, the cultivation of which many summer residents are engaged in. Of course, in order to get a good harvest of this wonderful crop, you must follow certain agricultural practices. First of all, you need to choose the right kind of corn. You should also decide where exactly it will grow on the site. Well, of course, in the process of growing this crop, like any other, you need to properly feed and water.
general description
Corn is an annual plant in the cereal family. In nature, there are only 6 of its varieties. However, as a garden and agricultural crop, only sweet corn is cultivated . This variety, depending on the variety, can reach a height of 1.5-3 m. Unlike most other representatives of cereals, the corn stalk is not empty, but filled with fabric. Its thickness is usually 3-7 cm.
In the lower part, this plant forms supporting air roots. The leaf length of corn can reach up to 1 m, and the width - up to 10 cm. The flowers of this plant are unisexual. Male collected in panicles and grow at the very top of the stem. Female flowers form cobs located in the sinuses. The color of the corn seeds is usually bright yellow. But there are varieties with white, red or black grains. The shape and size of the seeds of this culture may be different.
Popular varieties
Corn is a southern plant, the cob ripening of which occurs over time. Therefore, for the middle zone of Russia, the Urals and Siberia, it is worth choosing mainly its early varieties. The most productive hybrids that yield crops by mid-August include the following:
Sundance F1.
Trophy F1.
Sugar F1.
Also, under certain conditions in the country house in the middle lane, you can get a good crop of mid-ripening corn. Such, for example, as:
Lingonberry
Pearls.
Mermaid.
Later varieties of this culture are mainly suitable only for Ukraine and the southern regions of the Russian Federation. The most popular maize hybrids of this group are Russian popping and Polaris.
Grade Sundance F1
This powerful early ripe hybrid gives mature ears only 60-65 days after planting. Grain Sandans F1 for food is usually used at the stage of milk maturity in fresh or canned form. This variety received good reviews from summer residents, first of all, precisely for the excellent taste qualities of the ears. Also, the Sandans F1 hybrid is praised for its drought and frost resistance. However, this variety does not like shading and poor soil. Corn is sown (photo of it can be seen below) Sundance F1 in early May.
Hybrid Trophy F1
The growing season of this variety is 75 days. Trophy F1 hybrid should be planted in a well-lit place, without thickening. The ears of this variety are very long (up to 23 cm) and sweet. The grain is honey colored. You can eat cobs in food both fresh and boiled. Some housewives also preserve grain of this variety for the winter.
Sugar F1
This is a very popular good variety of corn, the fruits of which begin to ripen already on 70-80 days after planting. Sugar F1 hybrid grains are very tender, juicy and sweet. The ear of this corn has an average length (up to 20 cm). The variety earned its popularity not only for its good taste, but also for resistance to a disease such as bladder smut.
Hybrid Cowberry
This mid-ripening corn begins to ripen on 85-89 days after planting. The cob in Brusnitsa is rather short - 18 cm. But the grain in this variety is very large and has a pleasant bright yellow color. Like many other varieties of corn, Cowberry does not tolerate shading at all. A site for it is worth choosing with light fertile soil. Cranberries on the cob are best eaten boiled or canned.
Hybrid Pearls
The ripening period of this corn is 80-85 days. Her ears have an average length (up to 20 cm) and are distinguished by a bright yellow color. Use corn grains Pearls can be for cooking or canning. Among the pluses of this hybrid, summer residents, among other things, include high productivity and resistance to various fungal and bacterial diseases.
Corn Mermaid
This variety is perhaps the most popular among summer cottagers of Russia. Its main advantage is simply phenomenal disease resistance. To treat corn Mermaid is almost never necessary. The ears of this variety begin to ripen on 80-90 days after the appearance of the first seedlings. Their length is average - up to 20 cm. The color of the seeds of the corn variety Rusalka are lemon.
Late grades
Hybrid Russian bursting ripens on 90-95 days after planting. Her ear is very thin, differs in a conical shape. A characteristic feature of the variety is popcorn cracking grain. Soils Russian bursting prefers light, fertile, well-moistened. This variety is usually grown on cereals and popcorn.
Long (up to 23 cm) ears of the Polaris hybrid are great for canning and fresh consumption. This variety is valued by summer residents, including for resistance to disease and relieving. The grain at Polaris is long and has excellent taste. This corn should be planted on light fertile soils.
How to choose a place
Corn is a culture that prefers, first of all, very well-lit areas. Therefore, it is usually planted on the south side of a garden or vegetable garden. In this case, the largest crops can be harvested by placing corn on a hill. The best precursors for this culture are:
legumes;
cucumbers
Tomatoes
cabbage;
potatoes;
zucchini.
It is highly discouraged to grow corn after beets.
How to make a garden bed
The site selected for corn should be dug up since the fall. At the same time, manure and phosphate fertilizers should be introduced into the ground. Acidic soil is preferably improved with lime, chalk or dolomite flour. In the spring, just before planting, the corn bed only needs to be loosened a little.
When to sow
Planting of corn in open ground is usually done immediately after the air temperature in the street warms up to +12 C. In Ukraine and in the southern regions of Russia, this is approximately the end of April. In the middle lane, sowing is usually done in mid-May. In the Urals and Siberia, the beginning of June is considered the best landing date. A sign that it is time to sow this plant is the flowering of bird cherry and cherry.
Corn is a relatively unpretentious crop, which can be grown either by conventional technology (planting directly in the ground) or by seedlings. In the latter case, the seeds are placed in cups with a pre-prepared soil mixture in mid-April (for the middle band). The soil can be taken as a regular garden soil, adding well-rotted manure to it. Keeping seed cups in a very warm room is not recommended. Good seedlings of corn can be obtained only at an air temperature of not more than 20 degrees. To install cups is best on the south window. If the seedlings do not have enough sunlight, it will begin to stretch and grow very weak.
How to prepare the seeds
Before planting corn grains, be sure to place it in the sun for about 5 days. Then they need to be placed in warm water for an hour. Then the seeds are dried. Before planting the grain, it is advisable to dust with hexachloran or granosan according to the instructions. This will prevent the infection of young seedlings with pathogenic microorganisms, fungi or harmful insects.
How to plant
Being late with sowing corn is highly discouraged. This can lead to a significant decrease in yield. The depth of seed placement during planting on light soils should be 6 cm, on heavy soils - 4 cm. The optimum distance between individual plants for most varieties is 35 cm. The exception is only very high corn. Seeds of such varieties are planted at a distance of 45 cm from each other. The space between the rows of corn should be approximately 70 cm. 3-4 grains are placed in the hole. Thinning is performed after 7-8 leaves appear on the plants. At the same time, the strongest bush is left in the hole.
How to water corn
The soil under this crop should not be moistened too often, but abundantly. After watering, the soil under each plant should get wet at least 10 cm. It is impossible to allow strong drying of the soil in the beds in any case. Half-empty ears and low yields are the main consequences of insufficient watering of a crop such as corn. The photo below, the result of the drying of plants demonstrates clearly.
How to feed
For the first time, corn is fertilized about 20 days after planting. In this case, a mullein solution prepared in a ratio of 1:11 is usually used. You can also water the plants with diluted bird droppings (1: 20-25). Additionally, phosphate-potash fertilizers should be added to the ground. This will be especially useful if the leaves of the corn at the edges become wavy. This form of them speaks just about the lack of potassium.
Weeding and nipping
Corn - a plant under which weeds are usually removed only in the first couple of weeks after planting. This culture is very strong and takes a lot of nutrients from the earth. Therefore, no weeds underneath it usually grow. In the phase of active development of green mass in corn, lateral shoots should be removed. The fact is that they take away a lot of vitality from a plant. And this, in turn, greatly affects productivity.
After the corn grows to about 20-30 cm, it is advisable to mulch the soil on the bed. It is best to use well-rotted horse or cow dung for this purpose. You can also close the soil under the plants with ordinary dried grass.
Harvest in the country and harvest corn in the silage in the fields
When it is best to pluck the ears - of course, a matter of taste for the owner of the site. Some people like unripened sweet corn. Others prefer ripe cooked cobs. In any case, it is not recommended to store fresh corn for too long. Eat or preserve the cobs should be no later than 20 days after they are picked.
At the dachas, the grown crops, of course, are harvested simply by hand. Farmers cultivating this crop on large areas use special machines for harvesting corn. This technique is something like a small combine with a special header. The cutting device is usually located in front of the machine. Since corn is usually grown on livestock for livestock feed, it is cut completely - the green mass along with the ears.